The Hospital Association of South Africa (HASA) is the representative body for the majority of private hospitals in South Africa. HASA members include Netcare, Life Healthcare, Mediclinic and the National Hospital Network.

Their annual conference and exhibition took place at The Forum, The Campus in Bryanston, Johannesburg in October 2018. The theme was “Thinking Forward – Collaborate. Enhance. Evolve.”

Among those who have benefitted from the conference have been policymakers and regulators at national and regional level, academics, hospital and nursing services managers in the public and private sector, non-governmental organisations, clinical and quality control managers, medical staff, medical device and service suppliers, consumer champions, and healthcare media.

During this time of urgent and accelerated change in healthcare, the conference featured a number of international and local speakers with policy, regulatory and clinical expertise who, together, explored how through forward thinking and thinking forward, we can collaborate to enhance healthcare and evolve new systems and approaches into the future.

The HWSETA participated in the conference as both a delegate and an exhibitor.

The rejuvenation of artisan training is one of the stated priorities of the Department of Higher Education and Training (DHET). Artisan training has become a key performance area for South Africa’s 21 Sector Education and Training Authorities (SETAs) with each SETA having committed to a target figure of trained artisans.

Unless South Africa ramps up its annual training of artisans to 30 000 a year by 2030, the country’s requirement for artisans in the construction, engineering and other relevant sectors will not be met and the impact will be felt in the sustainability of these industries and very importantly, economic growth.

In 2013, HWSETA partnered with the Swiss-South African Cooperation Initiative (SSACI) to train 100 out-of-school, unemployed young South Africans with skills in demand by employers and institutions in the health and social development sectors. The first completion of the programme was in 2016.

At an event held in Johannesburg in August 2018, 77 more artisans graduated from the programme. Of this, 32 women of different trades completed their qualification.

The HWSETA committed R16.8 million in funding for the theoretical and practical training of the selected youngsters as boilermakers; electricians; fitters; fitters and turners; millwrights; as well as tool, jig and die makers.

With a shortage of artisans and an oversupply of untrained young people, South Africa needs to look at innovative ways of giving youths the skills they need to add value to industry and thereby earn a decent living. The Accelerated Artisan Training Project has proved to be a good way of doing exactly that.” said Ken Duncan, CEO, SSACI.

The primary objective of the project is to pilot a financially sustainable and quality assured artisan training system in terms of the new national regulations governing the implementation of learning programmes, the funding of apprenticeships and the administration of trade tests. In addition, it aims to open up the training capacity of small and medium sized companies and workplaces, which once activated will remain available for ongoing training.

The programme also aims to increase the number of women in the artisan field. The intention is to have 40% female apprentices entered into the programme at every intake.

“HWSETAs relationship with SSACI has been nothing but successful. We are proud of every graduate and are especially excited for the increased intake of female apprentices. This partnership will help fulfil our mandate of upskilling artisans and will continue to grow” said Elaine Brass, Acting CEO, HWSETA.

The HWSETA has conducted its fourth External Integrated Summative Assessment (EISA) on 15 November 2018. Nationally, 186 candidates wrote the examination for the Health Promotion Officer. Since 2016, 1317 learners have successfully completed the Health Promotion Officer external assessment.

The EISA is a single national assessment leading to the awarding of an Occupational Certificate. EISA ensures that the assessment of occupational qualifications, part qualifications and trades is standardised, consistent and credible.

The HWSETA is the only SETA to have completed the sitting of 4 EISAs and has been asked to assist other SETAs with the roll of the assessment.

“The HWSETA has been charting new territory, and we have excelled beyond our expectations. These achievements to date would not have been possible without the senior, head office and provincial management and staff support, most importantly the commitment from Nomsa Mdunana and Kanyisa Wopula has ensured us of our successes thus far. This achievement can definitely be added to HWSETA’s string of accomplishments to date.” said Champa Gopal, Qualification Development and Maintenance manager.

The fifth, national external assessment for the Health Promotion Officer will be conducted on 14 March 2019.

The Presidency, working with the Ministry of Health, is set to ensure the implementation of an overarching National Quality Implementation Plan for South Africa. The Plan seeks to transform existing service delivery challenges into learnings and opportunities for quality improvement and to pull together quality of care initiatives into a coherent 5-year plan. The Presidency has established a team to fast track the implementation of a quality improvement programme in preparation for the implementation of the National Health Insurance (NHI). This team involves several government departments, including the Department of Health.

The main objective of the plan is to ensure the best possible outcomes for the South African health system. This can be achieved through quality assurances and improvement strategies. It is proposed that four Quality and Learning Centres be established in each province to ensure that there is local capacity developed to support the poorest performing facilities in the province.

The Presidency has approached the HWSETA to support this initiative by funding capacity building in the Quality and Learning Centres, promote the implementation of the quality assurance plans at provincial and local levels and to conduct research on quality and learning development in the healthcare system.

At the Presidential Health Summit held on 19 October 2018, Deputy President David Mabuza said, “In transforming the health care system for the better, we need to ensure that we have committed and appropriately skilled health care professionals. We need to ensure that proper governance systems are in place to improve accountability for performance across all levels of health care delivery in our system.”

This collaboration is currently under consideration and a draft Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) has been drawn up.

The incidence of unaccredited private training institutions offering accredited qualifications is a national problem. Health and Welfare SETA (HWSETA) urges parents and learners to contact the HWSETA before enrolling with any training institution that claims to have accredited qualifications by the HWSETA. Even if the provider in question makes use of the HWSETA logo in marketing material, this is not a confirmation that they are accredited to offer these qualifications.

The accredited list of qualifications can be confirmed by calling the HWSETA’s toll free helpline on 0800 864 478.

If a learner/parent comes across an unaccredited institution offering HWSETA accredited qualifications please report it immediately to the HWSETA on the dedicated anonymous fraud tip line: 0800 204 967.

A list of accredited qualifications is available below:

Qualification Title

Qual ID

Credits

NQF
Level

Certificate: Basic Counselling Skills: Provides learner with basic counselling techniques and how to apply these in the therapeutic process

21128

120

5

Certificate: Methods of Counselling: Explores the variety of psychological theories, methods and practices used in the therapeutic process

21133

120

5

Further Education and Training Certificate: Social Auxiliary Work: Provides learner with basic understanding and knowledge of the South African context within which social services are required

23993

180

4

National Certificate: Theology and Ministry: Provides learner with basic Christianity concepts that will help transform troubled societies.

48891

120

2

Further Education and Training Certificate: Social Security Administration: Offers the learner knowledge and skills within the Social Security context, who will after completion, be able to specialise in areas of ethics, supervision and policy, as well as sector awareness.

48960

140

4

Further Education and Certificate: Theology and Ministry: Provides learners who have the required competence to serve as leaders in Christian communities by exploring Christianity concepts that will aid in transforming troubled societies.

49057

120

4

Further Education and Training Certificate: Counseling: Aims to develop learners who know the scope of practice and will meet the needs of a wide variety of work roles including traditional healers, career counsellors, trauma counsellors, etc.

49256

140

4

National Certificate: Victim Empowerment and Support: Provides the learner with an understanding of the Victim Empowerment sector to empower him/herself and the community.

49279

120

2

General Education and Training Certificate: Ancillary Health Care: Provides learner with fundamental skills required to perform community health functions under the supervision of a registered health worker.

49606

134

1

National Certificate: Victim Empowerment: Follows on from the registered National Certificate – Victim Empowerment and Support; where the learner will apply in-depth understanding of the Victim Empowerment Sector focusing on individuals, groups and communities.

49688

127

3

Further Education and Training Certificate: Gender Practice: Provides the learner with gender-transformative skills which will contribute to reducing gender-based violence and stereotypical images conveyed by media.

49836

152

4

Further Education and Training Certificate: Victim Empowerment Coordination: Follows on from the registered National Certificate: Victim Empowerment; where learners are required to apply Victim Empowerment skills in their communities and organisations.

49872

146

4

Further Education and Training Certificate: Probation Work: Provides the learner with probation work experience coupled with community-based learning, which equips him/her for their role as an assistant probation officer.

50041

142

4

National Certificate: Occupational Hygiene and Safety: Introduces the learner to concepts of occupational hygiene and safety and the importance thereof.

50062

144

3

Further Education and Training Certificate: Occupational Hygiene and Safety: Provides learners with essential skills of identifying, evaluating, advising and reporting on occupational hygiene and safety factors.

50063

145

4

National Diploma: Occupational Safety: Enables learners to identify, monitor, advise and report on occupational safety factors, which may have a harmful effect on the safety of workers in the workplace.

58786

242

5

Further Education and Training Certificate: Child and Youth Care Work: Provides practical experience and community-based learning which will equip the learner for a role as an auxiliary child and youth care worker.

60209

165

4

National Certificate: Occupational Health, Safety and Environment: Provides learners with a broad understanding and knowledge of Occupational Health, Safety and Environment (HSE) which will enable them to function in a safe and healthy workplace.

64149

120

2

Further Education and Training Certificate: Community Health Work: Provides learner with a range of awareness and competences to practice within a community development context, assisting communities to better manage their own health and wellness.

64697

156

4

National Certificate: Community Health Work: Provides the learner with self and social awareness along with skills that will help him/her better understand the ancillary health care field in various community contexts.

64749

140

2

National Certificate: Community Health Work: Learners are provided with thinking and problem solving skills to better understand the ancillary health care field in various community contexts.

64769

140

3

Higher Certificate: Diagnostic and Procedural Coding: Provides learner’s access to Clinical Coding that is essential to the healthcare industry which will lead to employment in occupations that involve Clinical Coding, data collection, data editing and data capturing.

66389

120

5

Further Education and Training Certificate: Community Development: Provides the learner with the necessary skills and competencies to develop communities with the aim of creating a better life for all.

67509

125

4

General Education and Training Certificate: Adult Basic Education and Training: Ancillary Health Care: Provides learners with the fundamental basics of general education learning by acquiring knowledge, skills and values in areas of ancillary health care.

73250

120

1

National Certificate: Occupational Health, Safety and Environment: Health: Enables learners to identify, monitor, advise and report on occupational health factors, which may have a detrimental effect on the health of workers in the workplace.

74289

120

2

National Certificate: Occupational Health, Safety and Environment: Safety: Provides learners with skills and knowledge that will help identify, monitor, advise and report on occupational safety factors, which may have a harmful effect on the safety of workers in the workplace.

74290

120

2

National Certificate: Occupational Health, Safety and Environment: Environment: Provides learners with an understanding and knowledge of Occupational Health, Safety and Environment (HSE), with a specific focus on environmental issues that may arise in the workplace.

74291

120

2

Further Education and Training Certificate: Public Awareness Promotion of Dread Disease and HIV/AIDS: Presents health care workers with the necessary skills that will help individuals manage the HIV/AIDS pandemic and any other dread disease and to understand and accept the condition.

74410

166

4

Further Education and Training Certificate: Community Development: HIV/AIDS : Provides the learner with the necessary skills and competencies to develop communities with specific focus on eradicating the HIV/AIDS pandemic in communities

76986

125

4

Further Education and Training Certificate: Community Development: Victim Empowerment: Provides the learner with the necessary skills and competencies to develop communities with specific focus on empowering individuals in communities that have suffered from harm, trauma, and material loss through violence, crime etc.

76988

125

4

Further Education and Training Certificate: Occupational Hygiene and Safety: Provides learners with the necessary skills and knowledge that will help them identifying problems and initiate actions regarding workplace hazards and risks.

79807

145

4

Further Education and Training Certificate: Institutional-Based Care: Provides learners with the necessary skills and knowledge that will aid in caring for institutionalised persons in various communities

80447

120

4

National Certificate: Community Development: General : Provides the learner with the necessary skills and competencies to develop communities with employment opportunities in public, non-profit and private sectors in the field.

83386

147

5

National Certificate: Community Health: Provides learner with critical understanding of community health needs that will assist communities better manage their own health and wellness.

83387

147

5

National Certificate: Community Development: Victim Empowerment: Provides the learner with an understanding of the Victim Empowerment sector to empower him/herself and the community.